Wrapped Around Her Finger
by captainswanseven
Summary: A little glimpse into a normal day in the lives of Emma, Killian and their daughter Hope.


**~.~**

Killian let his body sink into the fluffy cushions of the brown couch. He was a reformed pirate, but spending an entire day spoiling his five-year-old daughter always drained the energy out of him. Hope had grown to be a little spitfire, just like her mother (who was also keen on draining the energy out of him, albeit in rather different ways). They had spent most of the morning on a treasure hunt on the docks that he had prepared for her. His little love could have mommy's restlessness, but her aptness to find hidden treasure? That was all his.

Lunch had been the usual hurried affair, with Hope barely chewing the food in her mouth so as not to waste more of her playing time. Killian and Emma always demanded she sit and stood still during meals, but the way she occasionally swallowed her food whole was something they had little control over.

The minute Killian started doing the dishes, Hope rushed out the door and went straight to the shed to get her wooden sword. Her sweet request for daddy to join her put a smile on Killian's lips as he placed the clean dishes on the dish rack. His legs were beginning to ache from the treasure hunt, but he ignored the faint tinge of pain and joined her outside. Everything for his little love. Sword fighting with him had always been one of Hope's favorite hobbies, he wouldn't disappoint her by telling her daddy was too tired. Perhaps he should be stricter with her and not spoil her so much. His frequent inability to say 'no' to his daughter had been the source of some arguments between him and Emma over the years, but he was getting better at it. He was starting to realize that, in order to be a good father, he couldn't let Hope do everything she wished all the time. But not with sword fighting. That would always be the one thing he would never be able to say "no" to. If Emma was there, she would probably laugh and shake her head, but it wasn't like Hope didn't have his wife wrapped around her little finger either.

It was two hours later when Hope decided to go back inside to watch "Mulan" one more time. After he put the film on for her to watch, Killian finally reveled in the feeling of the soft cushions swallowing him up comfortably. Being a father was the most precious thing in the world and he wouldn't change it for anything, but it sure took a toll on his sleep. It was only when he suddenly felt Hope's small body crawling on the couch next to him that he stirred from his nap.

"Daddy," her fingers played with his earring, trying to wake him up. "Is it time to go get mommy yet?"

He opened his eyes reluctantly, squinting at the watch hanging on the wall. He couldn't believe he had passed out on the couch for an hour. Time surely flew these days.

"Not yet, little love," he playfully ruffled her blonde curls as Hope grabbed his hook. "You can finish watching the movie and then we'll go get mommy."

With the yellow bug at Michael's workshop for its annual checkup, Killian and Hope had agreed to meet Emma at the station to keep her company on her walk home.

"Okay," Hope cuddled next to him and then tried to use his hook to scratch her head. This was the second time she tried to do that today and Killian had to pull his hook away from her.

"No, love, don't do that. You can get hurt," he said in a more serious voice. As much as he loved that his daughter was comfortable with his hook, there had been occasions where he had cut himself accidentally. He would never let the same thing happen to her.

"But yesterday, when I peaked inside your bedroom, you were scratching mommy's back with your hook," Killian's suddenly widened eyes stared at her pouting face. "And she was laughing, so you weren't hurting her."

He froze for a moment, not really knowing what to say. Their daughter peaking inside their bedroom without either of them noticing was enough to make him panic. Those were potentially dangerous waters.

"Hope, we have talked about this before. You should never peak inside mommy and daddy's bedroom. If you need something-"

"I knock," she finished his sentence with a hint of annoyance and making her look like a mini-Emma. "After mommy leaves work, can we go get ice cream?"

"Now, you know the rules," he pushed her onto his lap, knowing she wouldn't like his answer. "No eating ice cream two days in a row." Her pout almost broke his heart, but he had to be strong. He was only doing what was best for her.

His thumb was caressing her cheek when electric sparks crackled in the air and turned the TV off. A mini-Emma indeed, Killian thought to himself with an amused grin on his face.

"I'm sorry, daddy," Hope said in a shameful whisper. This happened far too often for her not to know she was the one causing it. "I don't know why this happens."

"Never apologize for being who you are, little love," his tender smile had her chuckling as he booped her cute nose. "You take after mommy. And just like her, one day you will know how to control your magic."

* * *

Emma stared at the clock on her desk. Ten more minutes and she would be the hell out of there. It's not that it had been a hard day at work, but she was so tired that lately every hour seemed like a century. All she wanted was to go home and spend the rest of the day enjoying her husband and daughter. A smile grew on her lips when she remembered today was the day to wash Hope's hair, which also meant… bath time. That had always been one of their favorite things to do together. With Hope's undying love for water – she _was_ her father's daughter – bath time with mommy was always something that had her on pins and needles. Witnessing her daughter's genuine happiness whenever she asked mommy to wash her hair never ceased to warm Emma's heart, and she found herself wishing for time to pass already.

When the sound of small footsteps running down the hall reached Emma's ears, she only had time to turn around in her spinning chair before Killian and Hope came into view.

"Mommy!" Hope ran to her and giggled when Emma lifted her from the floor and pulled her into a hug.

"Hey, muffin!" Emma's lips crashed against Hope's chubby cheeks as she sat her on her lap. "I missed you. Did you have fun with daddy?"

Emma already knew the answer, but she still wanted to know what they were up to this time.

"I beat him at sword fight!" Hope shrieked in Emma's lap, her blue eyes landing on her father's. "And as a reward, daddy pretended to be a horse and let me ride him. It's fun, you should try."

"Hm, maybe I will," Emma sent Killian a teasing smile just as he leaned down to drop a kiss on her lips. They were both clearly amused at their daughter's choice of words. Was there anything more pure than a child's innocence? Killian was just about ready to drop an innuendo, but he held it in. Not in front of their daughter.

"Did you arrest someone today?" Hope asked as she wrapped her fingers around Emma's badge.

"No, no baddies today. Which means…" Emma stood up, carefully holding Hope in her arms. "I am free to go."

Whenever there was an arrest, she inevitably had to stay past her working hours to fill all the paperwork. Luckily for her, Storybrooke had been strangely peaceful and she had the rest of the day to herself and her family.

"Today is wash hair day!" Hope giggled, and the way her eyes crinkled with excitement made her look even more like Killian.

"It is wash hair day!" Emma joined in her daughter's enthusiasm and peppered kisses all over face.

"That's all she talked about on our way here," Killian grabbed Emma's purse from the coat hanger and put the strap around his shoulder. He had no problem carrying his wife's purse while she carried their daughter.

"Mommy, can you use that shampoo that has the elephants and the monkeys?" Emma laughed at her daughter's question, remembering their latest trip to the mall and how excited Hope had been when she had spotted a shampoo bottle with cartoons of elephants and monkeys. Needless to say that had been the one Emma had ended up buying.

"Of course I can," Emma squeezed Hope's hand as she turned off the station's lights and took one last look around, making sure she didn't forget anything. Her father should get there for the night shift in little less than an hour, but she still liked to leave everything in place.

After locking the door for her, Killian put one arm around Emma's shoulder, his hand caressing Hope's hair. As they walked out of the station, Killian's heart skipped a beat at the feel of having both of his True Loves in his arm. Life was finally good. Life was finally worth living. And there was nobody else he would wish by his side.


End file.
